Recent Dolph Ziggler interview

Speaking to XFINITY by Comcast, Dolph Ziggler revealed that he is none too pleased with WWE opting to utilize part-time talent in the premiere matches at WrestleMania instead of regulars—four of the six wrestlers advertised in the top three billed bouts are part-timers. When asked whether he is annoyed or inspired by this fact, he replied “it’s both.”

“It really pisses me off,” Ziggler noted. “But, it also is good business. Every year a part timer comes back, but there’s a reason that they’re back. Whether it’s the fans want to see them, if they’re a draw, if they’re a movie star, there’s a reason that they’re back. They’re not back just to do it. There’s business to be had. And it pisses me off and it motivates me a hundred percent. It makes me want to be that guy that they’re begging to come back. I appreciate it, it’s just good business. When people come to Wrestlemania to see the Rock and the Undertaker and they leave that Wrestlemania thinking, “Wow, that Dolph Ziggler stole the show. I can’t wait to tune in to ‘Raw’ to see what he does next.” That’s how I’ve lived my entire career.”

“The Show-off” also offered his two cents on his affiliation with Big E Langston and AJ Lee, saying it’s “crazy” that he’s now a locker room veteran assisting young talent.

“As the roster is changing and we have less guys from the late 90s, unless they’re on a light schedule, I’m good enough to be giving back to young up and comers,” said Ziggler. “And it’s really cool to have someone like an AJ and a Big E. I really appreciate that they want the best, they want to know what’s going on, they want to know why I did things in a match. It helps that they were childhood fans. AJ’s dream as a child was to be a WWE Superstar. I was five-years-old and I wanted to be a Superstar. We have that bond. It makes it that much more rewarding. And we’re just getting started. Once Wrestlemania comes and goes we’ll have more time to settle in and I think you’ll see a nice trio of great talent that could be the future of the business.”